There has been a buzz for some time now about Renee Fleming's latest recording project -- covering a whole bunch of rock songs -- we're talking Death Cab for Cutie, Tears for Fears, Muse, Arcade Fire, Band of Horses, Jefferson Airplane, et al. The recording is due out in early June.
Seems like Fleming, whose affinity for jazz is already documented (in a smoky chest voice quite unlike her operatic sound), is perfectly comfortable getting all rock-y, too. A few tantalizing snippets of the disc, "Dark Hope," are included in an audio clip that accompanies a story about the soprano that appeared Sunday in The Observer. (My thanks to the on-top-of-it folks at Washington National Opera for bringing the story to my attention via Twitter.)